I’d argue that the arrival of the Nars Wanted palette in Australia has been the most-hyped launch of the year thus far. As far back as December I received a text from one of my girlfriends with a Feb 27 countdown timer, following an announcement on Mecca’s socials.
I’ve had this baby in my hot little hands for over a week now, so I’ve had time to try out all 12 shades to see how well they do their thing. Here is a photo of me wearing as many of said shades at once as possible.
Nars describes the palette as “versatile range of pale pinks, seductive nudes, and glistening rose golds that play well on all skin tones,” and I imagine this to be true (having only tried this on my own skin tone and briefly goolging it on others). Six of the shades are intense metallics, while the remaining six are a mix of matte and satin finishes (I found the only two true mattes to be Biarritz and Coconut Grove, the lightest and darkest colours in the palette respectively).
Nars eyeshadows have traditional been on the receiving end of a bit of a bad rap in the past, although I’ve never had a bad experience with them (this could be down to either the specific Nars eyeshadows I’ve tried, or I could just be not that good at my job). The brand says they’ve introduced “an all-new pure pigment formula” with this palette, and I believe that to be true based on how well I found all 12 shades to perform.
My first instinct was to do a heavy pink, sparkly look, but after a few proper plays I’ve found that this palette lends itself to a daytime neutral eye as well as it does to anything more intense (it can be easy to forget about the humble neutrals in a palette like this).
As per most palettes, the shimmers were the most pigmented- I should note that I experience a little bit of fallout from the shimmers, particularly from the shade Mendoza, but this was only when I really packed them on to see how well they would layer. That said, when I applied these over a primer with a bit of tack to it and on another occasion a wet brush, I experienced very little fallout. I actually found the shimmers worked best when applied with the fingers as they were surprisingly creamy. I found the least pigmented to be Biarritz, which isn’t surprising as it’s the lightest shade in the palette and is a matte formula. This was also the chalkiest powder in the palette. I should also add that while Fallen Star appears as a pale gold in the pan, it darkens almost instantly when you touch it (with either your finger or a brush) and applies as more of an antique gold, verging on bronze (I actually preferred the colour it applied as so this didn’t bother me).
Worth the hype? Yes. Would I spend money on it? In a heartbeat. Should you spend money on it- almost certainly- if you really like makeup and are partial to a predominantly warm palette.
This product has been gifted courtesy of Mecca Brands however all views are, as always, entirely my own.
